Poland Bans Genetically Modified Crops

Poland Bans Genetically Modified Crops







Alex Pietrowski, Contributor
Activist Post

The North-Eastern European country, Poland, has become the latest EU nation to ban the production ofgenetically modified (GM) crops,
although, the European Food Safety Authority has approved GM crops as
being safe for cultivation. Poland’s Ministry of Agriculture has opted
to take advantage of a special ‘safeguard clause’ which allowed them to
reject these GM crops, allowing Poland to protect their agricultural
base from contamination.

Recently, the European Union approved two GM crops for Europe, Monsanto’s MON810 Maize, and BASF’s Amflora Potato, however, Poland’s ban will take effect on January 28th.

“To justify the enactment of these regulations, the
Ministry of Agriculture pointed out to the impossibility of the
coexistence of GM crops and the natural varieties, without the risk of
contamination of the latter. The Ministry also draws attention to the
threat of contamination of honey by pollen of maize MON 810 and the lack
of research supporting the safety of GM crops on the environment and
human health. From now on, a farmer who illegally sows MON 810 maize or
Amflora potato may be levied with severe financial penalties and even
with the destruction of his crop.” (GMWatch)

This is good news for opponents of genetically modified foods as their consumption has been linked to cancers
and other health problems in labratory animals and in humans. Last
year, Russia temporarily banned the production of several GM crops, but
in the last week “Russia’s Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer
Rights Protection and Human Welfare conducted its own safety assessment
of NK603 and concluded that there were no adverse effects on humans.” (AGProfessional)


This is a small and perhaps temporary victory in the fight against
franken-foods, but activists must remain steadfast and dedicated to stop
the tidal wave of genetically modified crops, which rely much more
heavily on boutique pesticides and herbicides than traditionally
cultivated crops. And organizations working toward this goal, like GreenPeace,
are quick to point out that we must remain vigilant so that the EU is
not able to overturn this ban, and also that proper oversight is
implemented to ensure that GM crops will be controlled effectively and that the ban is actually observed by local farmers.

Source:-
http://www.activistpost.com/2013/01/poland-bans-genetically-modified-crops.html